Intra-oral tracing apparatus

ABSTRACT

INTRA-ORAL TRACING APPARATUS FOR GOTHIC ARCH TRACING AND DENTURE EQUILIBRATING COMPRISING A BASE MEMBER AND A CONTACT PLATE HAVING A SURFACE THEREON MARKABLE BY INK, A SELF-INKING ADJUSTABLE BALL-POINT ELEMENT CARRIED BY   BASE MEMBER, AND MEANS FOR SELECTIVELY ADJUSTING THE HEIGHT OF THE BALL-POINT ELEMENT RELATIVE TO THE BASE MEMBER.

Feb. 23, 1971 E OR 3,564,717

INTRA-ORAL TRACING APPARATUS Filed June 30, 1969 INVENTOR. -F|G 3 PAUL L. ENNOR BY Wm M ATTORN EYS United States Patent O 3,564,717 INTRA-ORAL TRACING APPARATUS Paul L. Ennor, 3171 Somerset Place, Lafayette, Calif. 94549 Filed June 30, 1969, Ser. No. 837,550 Int. Cl. A610 9/00 U.S. Cl. 32-19 8 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Intra-oral tracing apparatus for Gothic arch tracing and denture equilibrating comprising a base member and a contact plate having a surface thereon markable by ink, a self-inking adjustable ball-point element carried by the base member, and means for selectively adjusting the height of the ball-point element relative to the base member.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to intra-oral tracing apparatus and, more particularly, to apparatus for Gothic arch tracing and equilibrating dentures for proper occlusal balance.

Heretofore, apparatus has been provided for recording the bite with bite plates fitted in the mouth of a patient by a dentist, with the patient making uninterruped oscillatory motions of a lower bite plate relative to an upper bite plate and in so doing tracing a Gothic arch on a contact plate mounted on one of the bite plates. Heretofore means have also been provided for correlating or equilibrating the dentures in the mouth of the patient so that the dentures will be in balance with proper contact and comfort to the wearer. Examples of such prior devices are disclosed in United States Letters Patent Nos. 3,068,- 570 and 3,314,152, and the present invention constitutes an improvement thereon.

In prior devices of the aforementioned character, a pin or a ball-pointed member is mounted on a base member and the pin is adjustable so that when the lower jaw is moved toward the upper jaw the pin or ball member engages a contact plate when the base and contact plate members are mounted in denture means and the denture means is in turn, mounted in the mouth of the patient. The pin and contact plate are constructed to permit uninterrupted oscillatory motion of the lower denture means in relation to the upper denture means with the pin in contact with the contact plate member. However, such prior devices require the use of ink, carbon or the like which must be applied to the contact plate prior to the insertion thereof into the mouth of the patient since the Gothic arch cannot be traced on the surface of the con tact plate without the prior application of ink, carbon or the like. Moreover the pins or ball points are not lubricated with the result that the patient has difiiculty in moving the pin over the contact plate surface to trace the Gothic arch with the net result that prior devices of the indicated character are relatively messy and untidy both for the dentist and the patient and uncomfortable for the patient because of the relatively high frictional forces which must be overcome by the patient as the patient makes the oscillatory motions of the lower bite plate relative to the upper bite plate.

An object of the present invention is to overcome disadvantages inherent in prior intra-oral tracing devices of the indicated character and to provide improved intraoral tracing apparatus which is self-inking and self-lubricating and which eliminates the necessity of making ink or carbon applications to the exposed surface of a contact plate.

Another object of the invention is to provide improved intra-oral tracing apparatus incorporating improved means 3,564,717 Patented Feb. 23, 1971 for adjusting the height of a self-inking, self-lubricated ball-point relative to a base member.

Another object of the invention is to provide improved intra-oral tracing apparatus that is relatively simple in construction, economical to manufacture, durable, efficient, and reliable in operation.

The above as well as other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description, the appended claims and the accompanying drawing.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIG. 1 is a side elevational view, with portions in section, of one embodiment of the invention, showing the same applied in a patients mouth;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the base plate and recording pen illustrated in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a plan view of the contact plate illustrated in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged sectional view of the recording pen illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of one means embodying the present invention for adjusting the relative height of the recording pen illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of another means embodying the present invention for adjusting the relative height of the recording pen illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the control members illustrated in FIG. 6; and

FIG. 8 is a plan view of a control plate used in conjunction with Gothic arch tracing apparatus.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION Referring to the drawing, an intra-oral tracing device, generally designated 10, is illustrated therein which is comprised of a substantially flat base member 12 which is rigid in construction and removably mounted by its end portions on the lingual surface of lower denture means 14. In bite recording and Gothic arch tracing operations, the base 12 may 'be mounted on the lingual surface of the lower denture means 14 in any suitable manner, such as by the use of plastic dental wax. The base member 12 is preferably made of metal or plastic having sufficient rigidity to withstand the forces exerted thereon. A recording pen, generally designated 16, is provided which is adjustably mounted in the base member 12 as will be described hereinafter in greater detail, the recording pen 16 projecting upwardly in a direction substantially normal to the plane of the base member 12. The intra-oral tracing device 10 also includes a substantially fiat upper contact plate 18 which is preferably made of metal or plastic and which is removably mounted in the palate portion of upper denture means 20. The lower surface 22 of the upper contact plate is matted or evenly roughened whereby such surface is markable by conventional ink for purposes which will be described hereinafter in greater detail.

As shown in FIG. 4, the marking pen 16 is comprised of a body 24 having a substantially cylindrical portion 25 having a slip-fit in the bore 26 provided in the base member 12. The upper end portion 28 of the body 24 is substantially frusto-conical in shape and the lower end thereof terminates in radially outwardly spaced relationship with respect to the outside diameter of the cylindrical body portion 25 so as to provide a shoulder 30 extending in a direction substantially normal to the longitudinal axis of the cylindrical portion 25.

In accordance with the present invention a conventional self-inking ball-point pen 32 is provided which is mounted within the member 24 and which is provided with a selfinking ball 34 which is disposed in upwardly spaced relationship with respect to the upper end 36 of the frustoconical portion 28 of the member 24, a suitable supply of ink 38 being provided within the pen 32 which serves to lubricate the ball 34 and to mark the matted surface 22 of the upper contact plate 18 in the Gothic arch tracing operation. As previously mentioned, means is provided for adjusting the height of the ball 34 relative to the base member 12, one such embodiment of the invention being illustrated in FIG. 5. As shown in FIG. 5, a wedge member 40 is provided defining an elongate solt 41 which is open at one end and which is adapted to receive the cylindrical body portion 25 of the member 24. The lower surface of the wedge member 40, as viewed in FIG. 5, is substantially flat and adapted to bear against the fiat upper surface of the base member 12 while the upper surface 44 of the wedge member 40 is tapered and adapted to engage the shoulder 30 of the member 24. Suitable calibrating indicia 46 is provided on the upper surface 44 of the member 40 whereby vertical movement of the member 24 and the ball 34 is calibrated with respect to horizontal movement of the wedge member 40. Any desired calibration may be provided. For example, movement of the member 40 corresponding to the distance between two lines of the indicia 46 in a horizontal direction may correspond to vertical movement of the ball 34 one millimeter in a vertical direction.

In the embodiment of the invention illustrated in FIGS. 6 and 7, control members 48 are provided each having a predetermined thickness. By way of example, control members having a thickness of one millimeter and two millimeters may be provided. Each of the control members 48 is comprised of a body 50 defining an aperture 52 adapted to receive the cylindrical body portion 25 of the member 24 with a substantially slip-fit. One end surface of the control member is adapted to bear against the shoulder 30 of the member 24 while the other end surface of each control member is adapted to bear against the upper surface of the base member 12. With such a construction, control members of the desired thickness may be fitted on the cylindrical body portion 25 so as to raise the ball 34 any desired distance above the upper surface of the base member 12.

In use, the intra-oral tracing device is mounted in the mouth of the patient with the pen member 16 disposed in the base member 12 and the height of the ball 34 is adjusted so that the ball makes contact with the matted surface 22 of the contact plate 18, the height of the ball 34 being adjused either by the wedge member 40 or by suitable control members 4 8. The patient then moves the lower jaw in lateral, protrusive, andretrusive movement until the Gothic arch is plainly traced by the self-inking ball 34 on the matted surface 22 of the contact plate 18, such movement being facilitated by the lubricating qualities of the ink.

When the apex has been established, the upper denture means 20 is removed from the mouth of the patient and a control plate 55 defining an aperture 56 is waxed or otherwise adhered to the contact plate 18 with the aperture 56 therein over the apex of the arch traced. With the control plate 55 in place, the upper denture means 20 is reinserted into the patients mouth and the patient closes his mouth so that the ball 34 projects into the aperture 56 of the control plate. The upper and lower denture means 14 and 20 are then fastened together by a suitable means, :such as by dental plaster, and the upper and lower denture means with the ball 34 in position are removed from :the mouth of the patient and mounted in a conventional articulator, the upper and lower denture means thereby remaining stable upon plastering.

The intra-oral tracing device 10 embodying the present invention is also useful in equilibrating dentures for proper occlusal balance. In the equilibrating operation, the contact plate 18 is rigidly but removably secured, as by dental wax, to the upper denture of the patient and the base member 12 and pen 16 are rigidly but removably secured, as by dental wax, to the lower denture. The ball 34 of the pen 1. projects upwardly toward the matted surface 22 of the contact plate 18. The dentures are then placed in the patients mouth and the pen 34 is adjusted so that when the patient closes and moves the lower jaw in all directions the dentures nearly touch. The vertical height of the ball 34 relative to the base member 12 is then adjusted by the wedge member 40 or by the control members 48 until a high spot or spots on the teeth contact. A sheet of carbon paper or other suitable means is then placed between the dentures to mark the point or points of contact and they are then ground olf properly to establish a proper balance or equilibration. The pen member 16 is then retracted by moving the wedge member 40 or by removing or changing a control member 48 to provide a new desired vertical distance for the ball 34 until the next high spot or contact point is encountered. Such high spots or contact points are again marked with carbon paper and jaw movement by the patient. This process is repeated until all high points or contact points have been removed by grinding so that the teeth are in contact only when necessary for proper occlusal balance.

It will be appreciated that by movement of the wedge member 40 in very small incremental distances or by substitution of control members :48 having relatively small differences in thickness, proper grinding and fitting of the dentures is insured.

While preferred embodiments of the invention have been shown and described it will be understood that various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. Intra-oral tracing apparatus for Gothi arch tracing and denture equilibrating comprising, in combination, a base member adapted to be secured to lower denture means, a contact plate adapted to be secured to upper denture means, said contact plate having a matted surface confrontable with the said base member and markable by ink, an element carried by said base member and having a ball point and means supplying said ball point with a lubricating ink, and means for adjusting the height of said ball point relative to said base member to contact said matted surface with said ball point, whereby relative movements between the base member and the contact plate cause ink tracings on the matted surface and friction between the ball point and the matted surface is reduced by the lubricating ink.

2. The combination as set forth in claim 1 wherein said means for adjusting the height of said ball point comprises a wedge member having indicia thereon and adapted to engage said element and said base member simul taneously, said indicia calibrating horizontal movement of said wedge member relative to vertical movement of said ball point.

3. The combination as set forth in claim 1 wherein said means for adjusting the height of said ball point is comprised of a control member of predetermined thickness, said control member being adapted to be disposed intermediate the said base member and a shoulder on said element.

4. The combination as set forth in claim 1 including a control plate securable to said surface of said contact member, said control plate defining an aperture adapted to receive said ball point.

5. Intra-oral tracing apparatus for Gothic arch tracing and denture equilibrating comprising, in combination, a substantially flat base member to be secured to lower denture means, a substantially fiat contact plate adapted to be secured to upper denture means, said contact plate having a substantially fiat matted surface confrontable with said base member and markable by ink, a marking element carried by said base member, said marking element carrying a ball point adapted to mark said matted surface of said contact plate and means supplying said ball point with lubricating ink, and means for adjusting the height of said ball point relative to said base member, whereby relative movements between the base member and the contact plate while the ball point contacts the matted surface results in only low frictional forces enabling smooth and continuous tracing motions.

6. The combination as. set forth in claim 5 including a wedge member defining an elongate slot adapted to receive said marking element, said Wedge member having indicia thereon calibrated to relative movement of said wedge member with respect to said base member and vertical movement of said marking element relative to said base member.

7. The combination as set forth in claim 5 including a control member of predetermined thickness carried by said marking member.

8. The combination as set forth in claim 5 wherein said marking element includes a substantially cylindrical body portion and a frusto-conical end portion providing a shoulder adjacent said cylindrical portion, and wherein said self-inking ball point is disposed in upwardly spaced relationship with respect to the upper end of said frustoconical portion.

ROBERT PESHOCK, Primary Examiner 

